We all know discrimination or bias for any reason, should never happen. It doesn't make sense, and its wrong. People should be able to attain success solely on the basis of what their abilities allow them to reach.

A Glass Ceiling is one of those comforting euphemisms that society grants itself to prevent from having to deal with the starker, more sinister descriptions, like discrimination, racism, prejudice, and even criminality.

We all know discrimination or bias for any reason, should never happen. It doesn't make sense, and its wrong. People should be able to attain success solely on the basis of what their abilities allow them to reach. Artificial barriers of any kind are anachronistic at best, and more than likely, illegal. Yet we all know they exist in parts of today's corporate America.

Not all barriers are based on stereotypes or biases. There are an assortment of artificial barriers that exist which can prevent someone from advancing within a corporation for reasons other than merit. Sometimes the barriers to advancement may be the result of lack of opportunity within an industry due to stagnant growth, or industry consolidation.

Some barriers are even created by choice. In most traditional American families, it is typically the woman who sacrifices years of her career to stay home and raise children. Later, when that same woman is ready to re-enter the workforce, she may find that her skills have eroded and or not kept up with technology.

If after having raised her family's children, a woman wants to be rehired, she may very well have to re-start her career at a lower rung of the corporate ladder than they would have had they stayed continuously employed. She may also have to interact with younger employees, and managers, who have a different view of the world and workplace than do their older counterparts.

Although clearly wrong some employers ever mindful of the cost of training, may be less likely to promote a woman if they even think that she will not continue to stay as an employee of the corporation.

Some would argue that these barriers and these biases are retreating to some degree, but clearly there is no end to them in sight. Statistics continually point out that while the gap may be narrowing, women make less money for doing the same job than do their male counterparts.

Ridiculous though they may be, there are even still some stereotyped of woman, that can hold them back in their careers. USA TODAY quotes Donna Lenhoff at the National Partnership for Woman and Families as saying that "Stereotypes that women are slow, dumb, not 'with it' are still prevalent."

Even the process of redress for these biases seems to be less productive for a woman than a man. USA TODAY points out that even when women complain about discrimination or bias they are likely to win "about half as much as their male counterparts. Men get an average of about $25,000. Women, however, win average awards of roughly $12,000 according to a review by the AARP and the Fair Employment Council of Greater Washington of charges filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission by women 40 and older."

Phew...quite a problem! These biases, circumstances, family issues, and market driven forces, all conspire to create a barrier-a "glass ceiling".

A Glass Ceiling. It sounds relatively harmless, doesn't it? It almost sounds artistic, or aesthetic. But such artificial barriers are anything but aesthetic, artistic, or in any other way benevolent to those that are victims of it.

A Glass Ceiling is one of those comforting euphemisms that society grants itself to prevent from having to deal with the starker, more sinister descriptions, like discrimination, racism, prejudice, and even criminality.

No matter how they may be rationalized or justified, they represent the worst of American Free Enterprise. They stop people from achieving and growing and succeeding, not because a person lacks the inherent ability to reach the next plateau, but because policy, rather than reason or fairness bars their way.

There are also less insidious reasons, but just as insurmountable reasons that glass-ceiling barriers to advancement exist.

In today's world of "mega-mergers", global economies, consolidations, and enhanced productivity, it is not uncommon for entire industries to get restructured, or downsized, leaving no room for people to grow and advance. When two companies merge, the new consolidated company probably will have some job duplication. That means the capable, but highly priced executives, be them woman or man, can find themselves out of a job.

Others employees, who may be offered continued employment in this newly merged company, may not have the same level of responsibility they once had. These people may find that their salaries exceed the responsibility they are left with, and may suddenly become highly expendable, or at least less upwardly mobile.

While certainly not limited to women this type of glass ceiling can be as impenetrable, as it is common in today's consolidation oriented economy.

You do not always have to look up to find a glass ceiling. Sometimes glass ceilings might better be described as fortress doors that stop re-enter a business rather than one that stops a person from rising within the business. They can be both.

The graying of the baby boomer generation and the increased number of managers vying for fewer and fewer top jobs form another type of glass ceiling. This year roughly 11,000 baby boomers are turning 50 every single day! That's a lot of capable people competing in the constantly narrowing funnel of senior management positions.

Large numbers of qualified people competing for jobs in an economy that is trying to streamline management at the top, does not bode well for some highly talented individuals.

So with all these issues, fair and unfair, market or bias driven, where does one go, when there is simply no more room to advance in the corporate world?

In my opinion, the answer is simple. Start a Business! Better yet, join a franchised system!

Why? Because franchises can offer the answer to the bedeviling issues that Glass Ceilings and lack of advancement opportunity for advancement engender.

With a franchise, a person gets to use all the skills, and management talents that they have. In many high quality franchise systems there is more than sufficient growth opportunity to accommodate even the most aggressive strategy, so ability alone will be the final arbiter of how far a person can advance.

Imagine, for a moment, you are a woman who finds herself trying to either re-enter the workplace after several years. Although your abilities may equal any man, and her intelligence may also be on a par or with your male counterparts, you suffer the unfortunate result of her having absented yourself from the workplace.

You have been away from the process, away from the culture, away from the issues of the moment, and despite all your innate intelligence and abilities, you will come to the table with the handicap that absence creates.

This is not the case when entering a franchise. The key word is "entering". It's a starting point. There is no lost time to be made up. Each franchisee starts fresh. The franchisor is charged with teaching each franchisee the franchisor's business from the ground up.

Franchisors generally assume that their franchisees will not only have had no prior experience in the franchisor's business, but that their prospective franchisees will never before have been in any kind of business for themselves.

So, what does a franchisor look for? The very things that any talented applicant will have: intelligence, commitment and dedication. They typically do not look for their prospective franchisees to have had long-standing experience in the franchisor's business.

In fact, in an odd twist of fate, the experience with a paticular that may be so critical for continued corporate advancement, may be considered to be a negative to a franchisor. Franchisors will often tell you they do not want to have to "untrain" a franchisee, just to have to retrain them with the franchisors system.

In other words, franchisors like the fact that a prospective franchisee will come to the franchisor without a lot of preconceived notions, and ideas about how that specific franchise should be run.

It is true that management experience and corporate "seasoning" are plusses to many franchisors. However, it usually does not matter in what specific business that experience was learned. Franchisors view these as transferable skills, and are happy to have franchisees who have them, and can use them to help the franchisee to implement the franchisor's system.

This opens up a wide panorama of opportunity to those who have bumped against an impenetrable corporate glass ceiling, but have not yet reached the level of accomplishment that will satisfy them.

From my experience with franhisors, they bring none of the glass ceiling issues or biases to their selection of franchisees. If you are qualified for entry into their system, you are accepted. It's as simple as that.

Later when it comes to growth, the issue rests squarely in the hands of the franchisee. If a franchisee wants to grow, and if the system is growing, that franchisee will likely be able to grow!

In Late September, I had the pleasure of attending a franchise convention for Great Clips, a hair cutting franchise that has now opened over 1,100 salons, and is continuing to grow rapidly. Most Great Clips Franchisees are multiple unit operators, and many are still growing.

I attended their awards banquet and in actions that eloquently underscore the opportunity that franchising can offer a woman, their franchise of the year was a woman. So, too, was their employee of the year. Their recently appointed President? Yep, a woman! Class ceiling? Not at this franchise!

This is the formula found throughout the franchise industry. Ability, skill, and hard work create ongoing growth opportunities.

No previous experience is necessary, however, people who like glass ceilings, need not apply!

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